Cowboys and Iranians
Cowboys and Iranians is the 17th episode of the eighth season and 187th overall. Will is appalled when Jack's new boyfriend hits on him. Grace hires a new assistant out of racial guilt. Synopsis You should've listened to me, white girl With workload heavier than usual, Grace decides to hire a new assistant at the office and against Karen's warning, she hires Pam, a Middle Eastern woman who appeals to Grace's white guilt. Pam soon proves to be an incompetent assistant and Grace starts to feel disappointed that Pam is not doing her part to build a productive workplace that is tolerant of people from different backgrounds. Pam then mentions that she is Jewish, which delights Grace who is also Jewish. Grace explains that she does not need to be tolerant of her own kind and fires Pam immediately. Gay bar fight! Jack is excited to be dating a handsome guy Travis, who is into the gay cowboy scene. He takes Will to the cowboy-themed bar to introduce him but Travis immediately flirts with Will while Jack is getting drinks. Jack, who accuses Will of being jealous, brushes him off. Later, Travis approaches Will again and admits that he does not take Jack seriously because he is an idiot. Will defends his friend and the two engage in a gay bar fight where "oddly, not a single punch was thrown". Jack later laments that Travis is too good-looking to be his boyfriend. Will assures Jack that he is better than Travis and is in a league of his own. When Jack asks what did Travis say to offended Will, he lies and tells him that Travis called him fat. Cast Main * Eric McCormack (Will Truman) * Debra Messing (Grace Adler) * Sean Hayes (Jack McFarland) * Megan Mullally (Karen Walker) Guest * Shohreh Aghdashloo (Pam) * Leslie Jordan (Beverley Leslie) * Shawn Christian (Travis) * Brian A. Setzer (Benji) * Tommy Woelfel (Coat Check Guy) * Mic Thompson (Dancing Cowboy) * Jessica Lindsey (Woman) Notes * Title is a reference to "cowboys and Indians". * Will and Travis dance to Dolly Parton's 9 to 5 (1980). * Will dismisses Travis saying he does not find cowboys sexy. However, in the episode Will on Ice, he tells Grace that he is wishing for a real cowboy for his birthday. ** This may have just been a ploy because Travis was two-timing Jack. Cultural references * Karen tells Pam that she looks like Egyptian actor Omar Sharif on her ID picture. * While singing Don McLean's American Pie (1971), Grace replaces "drove my Chevy" with "drove my ox cart", after the primitive vehicle still used in rural areas in the Middle East and Asia. * Karen refers to Pam as "Princess Jasmine", after Aladdin's leading lady in the 1992 animated film which was set in the Middle East. * Pam excuses herself to drink reasoning that it is better to pray "from an East-facing bar". This is a reference to the Vastu Shastra concept applied mostly in Indian architecture. * Beverly is dismayed that Clay Aiken is not in the jukebox. Aiken, regarded as "the most-loved reality star of all time" then has amassed his diverse fan base following his time in American Idol. * Jack exclaims that the "one-eyed monster has reared its ugly head," referring to the popular Shakespearean phrase expressing jealousy, although the original is "green-eyed monster", which Will mentions. * Jack mentions that the movie A League of Their Own (1992) was during a time when "Madonna was still relevant, and Rosie (O'Donnell) was still funny." Both Madonna and O'Donnell have guest starred on the show as Liz and Bonnie, respectively. Media Gettyimages-140698676-612x612.jpg Gettyimages-140698677-612x612.jpg Gettyimages-140698678-612x612.jpg Gettyimages-140698679-612x612.jpg Gettyimages-140698687-612x612.jpg Gettyimages-140698689-612x612.jpg Gettyimages-140698690-612x612.jpg Gettyimages-140698691-612x612.jpg Gettyimages-140698692-612x612.jpg Gettyimages-140698694-612x612.jpg Gettyimages-140698693-612x612.jpg Gettyimages-140698681-612x612.jpg Gettyimages-140698682-612x612.jpg Gettyimages-140698685-612x612.jpg Gettyimages-140698686-612x612.jpg Quotes Category:Episodes Category:Season 8